Birth of a Phoenix (Vampire Style)
by Magos186
Summary: It's been months since Edward left her. Days since Jake abandoned her. She knows now the only man she can truly count on is her father. But even he can't stay with her forever. What would happen to Bella if she lost Charlie as well? NM AU-character death (Possibly going up for adoption. See profile if interested)
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Twilight is property of SM. I just like to play with the characters.

A/N: Story notes: Bella & Charlie are extremely close in this story. Check out the alternate scene from New Moon where they talk when she wakes up from a nightmare. They so should not have cut this scene down.  
www. youtube watch?v=ruavHPbhO4I remove the spaces and go to 1:40.

Wolves: In this story, Victoria is dead. She was killed just after Quil phased. The wolf pack consists of Sam, Jared, Paul, Embry, Jake, & Quil.

A/N: Warning: There is a character death in this chapter. You may need some tissues. You have been warned.

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Bella sat in an unyielding, plastic yellow chair, holding onto her father's hand. Somehow she still had tears left, she vaguely noticed. She had been crying for hours…ever since she got the call telling her that her father had been shot during a bank robbery. For some reason his vest didn't work and the two bullets entered his chest, one grazing his lung. The doctors had him in surgery for hours trying to repair all the damage. He was moved into the ICU a short time ago, the surgeon telling her that they had done what they could for now, but that it was too dangerous to continue the surgery. He needed to stabilize before they could continue.

It was too much for Bella to handle. She wasn't strong enough to survive this. First she'd lost Edward, then she'd lost Jake and now...now she was going to lose her father. He was the one man, the only man she could ever count on. He was always there for her, even when she didn't want him to be. And now he was lying in a hospital bed fighting for his life. They say bad things always happen in threes.

"Bells," a voice called softly. Bella raised her head to find her father lying there watching her, a sad smile on his face. Where were all the wires? The breathing tube?

"I'm dreaming, aren't I?" Bella murmured.

"Yes and no," Charlie replied as he sat up. The hospital gown was gone now too. Instead he was dressed in his Forks P.D. tee shirt and jeans.

"You're going to leave me," Bella said as tears ran down her cheeks.

"I'm so sorry baby. I don't want to go. Not now—not when you still need me."

"I'm sorry for how I've been acting. I know you've been worried. I'm sorry I've been such a bad daughter."

"Bells, you couldn't be a bad daughter if you tried," he said as he took her hands in his. "You're heartbroken. I've been there remember? Everyone deals with that in their own way. And you've been getting better. You're starting to heal. You're stronger than you know baby."

"But I'm not strong," she protested. "I won't survive this. I can't lose you. Please don't leave me daddy," she begged as she wrapped her arms tight around him. "I love you. I need you."

"I'm sorry baby, but I have to go," Charlie said sadly as his tears began to fall. "I love you more than anything in this world and I've been proud of you every day of your life. I will always be with you baby." He placed one last, soft kiss on his daughter's forehead before he faded away.

Bella awoke with a start, her hand still gripping Charlie's hand as the beeping in the room stopped, replaced by a long, steady note. In a flash there were doctors and nurses rushing in and pulling her away from her father.

"Start compressions…No pulse…atropine…rhythm...clear…"

Random words floated around Bella's head, but she didn't process any of it. She watched in horror as the staff tried desperately to start her father's heart. "Do something!" She shouted. "Help him!"

She quickly turned her head when she saw them place the paddles on her father's chest. That meant his heart was beating again. She heard the faint beep…beep…beep before it faded back to that single, steady note.

"Damnit! Begin CPR again."

It was a lifetime and an instant before the commotion in the room stopped. "That's it," one of the doctors said. "I'm calling it. Time of death: 12:45am.

"No! NO! DADDY!" Bella screamed as she broke away from the orderly holding her. She flung herself across the bed, wrapping her arms around her father, burying her face in his chest. The lack of a heartbeat was deafening in the silent room. The heartbeat she often fell asleep to as a child…the heart her dad always said beat for her…it was gone now. Her dad was gone. She'd never hug him again, never eat pizza and watch the Mariners with him again, never make him dinner again, never see his eyes sparkle as he laughed again. He'd never be there to watch over her as she slept, take care of her when she was sick. She'd never feel his safe, warm, loving arms wrap around her and protect her from everything ever again. She was all alone now. Her daddy was gone.

The hospital staff quietly left the room, leaving the poor girl to her grief. They didn't venture far from the door though, each silently crying as they listened to the heart-wrenching sobs. Every one of them knew Charlie Swan. He was a great man. The entire town would mourn his loss for a long time to come.

The eldest of the group headed down to the waiting room to deliver the bad news. Nearly all of the Forks P.D. sat in the room, waiting to hear anything about their beloved chief. The last word they'd been given was that he was in critical condition.

"Dr. Gerandy, how is he?" Carl, the deputy chief asked. He was the first to notice the man standing in the doorway. Soon enough, all eyes in the room were on the doc and his tear stained face.

"I'm sorry boys. He didn't make it," Dr. Gerandy choked out before he hurried away. This was hard enough for him without having to witness anyone else's grief. He'd known Charlie all his life. He'd delivered him, delivered his daughter. Charlie was family. He allowed himself only a few minutes to cry though. Soon enough, he'd have to make a call and deliver the horrible news to one more person. He was worried about how his call would be received though. This person hadn't set foot in Forks for years. The last time was when Charlie's folks passed away. The return was sure to shock some people. One thing the doc knew for sure was that nothing would ever be the same again.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Look to my profile for the outfit/jewelry links for this story.

A/N: I'm sorry for the long delay on this one guys. I haven't felt much like writing. I am thinking about putting this up for adoption. Let me know if you're interested.

Bella sat at her desk, staring into the mirror propped on it, a brush held loosely in her hand. She wasn't staring at her lost eyes or the broken expression on her face. No, it was the necklace on her that drew her attention. It was a sterling silver, heart shaped sapphire necklace. It was half of the present her father got her for her sixteenth birthday. The other half was a sterling silver gemstone bracelet with oval shaped sapphires, diamonds, and silver hearts, which currently rested on her left wrist. Both pieces were beautiful and unexpected, seeing as she and her dad didn't talk a lot while she lived in Arizona. Charlie had no problem expressing his feelings when they lived together when she was younger; it was only after Renee took her away that he hid away the loving father. He could have gotten over the loss of Renee, but the loss of his daughter nearly killed him. He thought that if he hid his feelings he couldn't get hurt again. At least that's what the therapist said. Bella and Charlie had started therapy in January, just three short months ago. Neither one of them had wanted to go, never even thought of going, but after November 30th, neither of them really had a choice.

_The snow stuck to the ground, getting a few centimeters deeper every hour. It was a joyous time for most people. It signaled that Christmas was getting closer, just thirteen short days away. Everyone was out shopping for presents, putting up decorations, planning parties. It was a joyous time for everyone, but the Swans._

_Fifteen long days ago, Bella had fainted as she was walking up the stairs. Fortunately, Charlie had been walking up behind her and was able to catch her before she fell. When she didn't wake up after a few minutes, he picked up her nearly weightless body, put her in the back seat of his car, and drove to the hospital. He knew how little she'd been eating, how little she'd been sleeping and he knew there was only so much the body could take before it shut down. Thanks to the incredible skill and effort of the Forks Hospital staff, that didn't happen. Dr. Gerandy said it was close though. If Bella had gone just a few more days as she was, her organs would have begun to shut down. _

_So there were the Swans, both living in the same hospital room. Bella lay in her bed unconscious, hooked up to an I.V., a feeding tube, and all manner of monitors. Charlie stayed with her all day, every day. He took a leave of absence from work, promoting his deputy to interim chief. He slept in the spare bed in Bella's room, showered in the en-suite bathroom, and ate the meals Sue Clearwater brought him twice a day. She and her husband were great friends. He was lucky to have them. _

"_How's your girl doing today?" Sue asked softly as she walked into Bella's room, pulling Charlie from his thoughts._

"_The same she's been every day. I just don't understand this Sue. How could his leaving do this to her?"_

"_It wasn't just him though. The whole family left her. Unless she wakes up and tells us, we may never know what they did to her to get this kind of reaction. I'm sorry." _

"_Yeah, me too."_

_A throat clearing startled them both and they turned to the door. "Sorry to interrupt," Dr. Gerandy said. "Charlie, can I talk to you in my office?"_

"_Go ahead," Sue said. "I'll give Bella her bath while you're gone." Sue was a nurse down in La Push, but she had privileges at the hospital in Forks as well. She was the only person besides Dr. Gerandy that Charlie really trusted to help look after his girl._

_It wasn't until Christmas Eve that Bella finally woke up. Her body had recovered well while she was in the hospital and thanks to everything the docs were giving her she managed to gain fifteen pounds. She needed a special diet after that to get her back up to a healthy 130 pounds. Sue came over whenever she wasn't working to help out. Charlie wasn't due back to work until the end of January so he spent his days with his daughter. They spent every morning working out to help Bella build back up her muscle mass as the depression, coma, and anorexia had made her quite weak. A few afternoons a week they spent in the kitchen, Bella trying to teach her father how to cook and bake. On the days they weren't cooking, they went out to do different things like whale watching, mini-golfing, antiquing in Port Angeles. They also took woodworking and handyman classes together. They both enjoyed spending so much time together. It helped them grow closer and had the added bonus of being a good distraction. _

_Another good distraction was finishing up the attic. Charlie had raised the roof not long after Renee left him. He had needed a project to do, something to keep him from drinking himself into a coma over the loss of his little girl. So he raised the roof on the attic and began turning the giant space into a master bedroom suite. The drywall, ceiling and wainscoting was all taken care of, the hardwood flooring was installed for both the bedroom and walk-in closet. It all just needed a good cleaning, a fresh coat of paint and some furniture. He had even had most of the master bathroom complete. His father had been a plumber and until he joined the police force when he was 21, he worked with him. Together the two of them extended the lines from the second floor bathroom up to the attic and built the bathroom. Like the bedroom, that also needed a cleaning, a fresh coat of paint, and to have the actual bath and shower installed. His plan was to get it all finished and cleaned up no later than mid-January and present it to Bella. She needed to get out of her bedroom, away from the memories. She'd spent too much time in there with _him_ that everywhere she looked she was reminded of him. She needed a change. _

_Once he was done presenting Bella with her new rooms, he planned to completely remodel the kitchen. It was moderately sized, but the set up was fairly old fashioned and there just wasn't enough room for Bella whenever she cooked or baked. She would always have to use the kitchen table as well as all the available counter space. He was going to fix that. The last time anyone had done anything in the kitchen it was Renee painting the cabinets yellow. It was time to get rid of that. Both Swans needed to cleanse their souls of the hurt they'd suffered and it was going to start with their house, followed by some therapy._

"Are you here to kill me?" Bella said softly as she caught a flash of red in the mirror, breaking her out of her thoughts. "You could. I have nothing left to live for. I've lost everyone I ever loved. Edward told me I was no more than a distraction, a pet, before disappearing with his coven. I was catatonic for a while after. I had a friend who tried to help me, to put me back together, but then he ditched me too. He broke every promise he ever made me. The only one I had left was my dad. I'm burying him today. My own mother can't even be bothered to come.

"So go ahead and kill me for being in the wrong place at the wrong time…for your mate who was stupid enough to go against such a large coven alone…for revenge against someone I haven't seen or spoke to in months who certainly won't give a rat's ass I'm gone. So go ahead and end my pain."

All of this was said with such a dead voice that the vampire actually felt sympathy. Victoria didn't know what to say to the broken girl, so she simply said softly, "Live your life. You'll never see me again," before disappearing out the open window. A few minutes later, Bella forced herself to get up and finish getting ready. She grabbed her flat, black ballet pumps from the closet and slipped them on. She then pulled on her black, long sleeve cable cardigan over her knee length black satin dress. Fortunately it was warm enough that heavier clothing wouldn't be needed. The sky was cloudy, though there was no rain predicted. Umbrellas were going to be brought just the same.

"Hey Honeybee," a soft voice said. Bella turned to find a tall man in a black suit with short dark hair and the saddest golden eyes. He moved over to her and gently wrapped her in his arms. "How are you doing?"

"A bit better now that you're here Em. Thank you for coming."

Emmett pulled back from the hug and looked upon her pale face, taking in the bloodshot eyes and dark circles beneath them. "I'd never let you go through this alone. I'm so sorry this happened Bell."

"Thanks. I guess I should get used to hearing that today," she said with a grimace.

"I'll be by your side the whole time, I promise. If it gets to be too much, just let me know."

"Thanks Em. How did you get away though? I thought the fortune teller wouldn't let you."

"I've officially abandoned them. Hypocritical shits every one of them. I've been pen-palling around with you since they forced me to leave. I never made a conscious choice to talk to you so the pixie never saw it. When I heard about Charlie, I packed up a bag and bought a one-way ticket out here. They tried to stop me of course. So I packed everything I had there and left. Rosie and Jasper are out in Vegas waiting for me. Rosie's had her own issues with the family since she was turned so she jumped at the chance to leave. Jasper and Alice got into a huge fight when she tried to stop me and it came out that he's not her mate. He never has been. It made sense. I never saw them kissing or heard them going at it. He stayed because he couldn't keep killing humans. He died with them every time he fed. She promised to help him find a new way of living, so he went to the Cullens. He's much happier now that he left though. The two of us made a pit stop on the way to the airport and burned all the clothes the pixie had ever bought us and we went on a shopping spree of our own. It's much nicer wearing the clothes we want. Alice is a little control freak…her and doucheward both. Everything has to be their way and if it's not then they throw a temper tantrum. And Bell, I don't believe for one second that you were ever doucheward's mate, not because _you're_ not good enough, but because _he's_ not good enough for you. He tried to change you into this prim little proper lady because that's what he expected of his wife in his time. Those are his beliefs and it's hard for a vampire to change. Me? I lived in a town where everyone worked. Women worked the farms right alongside their men so I never had those preconceived notions that women should be seen and not heard. And I'm getting way off topic aren't I?" He asked with a smile.

"Just a bit, but I don't mind hearing it. We should get going though. The limo's going to pick us up at the funeral home to take us to the cathedral in Port Angeles." The mayor had planned everything so that Bella wouldn't have to. He'd chosen the St. Anne's Cathedral in Port Angeles mainly because of its size. Charlie was also a part time parishioner there. He spent a lot of time in Port Angeles helping on difficult cases or doing training seminars. There were so many people whose lives he'd touched that the small church of Forks couldn't hope to hold everyone. So they'd chosen a larger venue. The entire town of Forks would be there, as well as the entire Quileute population it seemed. There would also be a lot of cops from P.A., Seattle, and other surrounding towns as well. Bella's fridge, freezer, and even Charlie's empty fish freezer was already filled with food from people, even though it had only been three days.

After the service at the church, they'd begin the journey back to Forks, where Charlie would be buried in the town cemetery. After that, the repast was scheduled to take place in the parking lot of Forks high. It was the only place big enough to accommodate all the people they expected. They had the whole place covered with white, interconnecting tents, in case of rain. The food would not be catered, but every family in town was bringing a tray of food, the cooks at the diner making several, including multiple pies, all of Charlie's favorites. It was a day to mourn the loss of a great man, but also to celebrate his life and everything he had done for the town of Forks.

A/N: I am working on a new chapter of the original version, set to be Bella/Paul. No guarantees on when it'll be finished and posted though.


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